No. 9 ODU Falls To No. 8 Penn State In Season Opener, 2-1

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Ninth-ranked Old Dominion fell to No. 8 Penn State, 2-1, in its 2014 season opener at the Field Hockey Complex Friday night.

"We played well for periods and that shows in the shots and opportunities we had to score," said Head Coach Andrew Griffiths. "Overall we did not play with enough authority. We need to establish more control in the key areas of the field. We are looking forward to an opportunity to do this on Sunday."

Senior forward Katy Fuhrman (Columbia, Pa.) started the scoring and gave the Lady Monarchs the 1-0 lead 23:37 into the game with a tally after she deflected a shot over the goalie. Three minutes later, the Nittany Lions would even the score when Bethany Mink netted a goal off of a penalty corner. The assists were credited to Jenna Chrismer and Laura Gebhart.

Penn State would end the half with a late goal with less than two minutes remaining by Chrismer to take a 2-1 lead over the Lady Monarchs at the intermission.

Neither team scored in the second half, as Penn State held on for the win. Old Dominion took 12 shots in the final period, but could not find the back of the cage.

Senior Megan Hept (Chesapeake, Va.) suffered the loss for Old Dominion, playing the entirety in goal and making two saves. Kylie Licata spent all 70 minutes in goal for the Nittany Lions and finished the game with nine saves.

Old Dominion outshot Penn State, 16-8, including a 10-6 advantage in shots on goal. The Lady Monarchs also held a 6-3 edge in penalty corners.

The Lady Monarchs will be back in action on Sunday when they travel to No. 19 American in Washington, D.C. for a 1:00 p.m. contest.